There was once a forester who went into the forest to hunt, and ashe entered it he heard a sound of screaming as if a little child werethere. He followed the sound, and at last came to a high tree, and atthe top of this a little child was sitting, for the mother had fallenasleep under the tree with the child, and a bird of prey had seen it inher arms, had flown down, snatched it away, and set it on the high tree.

The forester climbed up, brought the child down, and thought to himself:'You will take him home with you, and bring him up with your Lina.' Hetook it home, therefore, and the two children grew up together. And theone, which he had found on a tree was called Fundevogel, because a birdhad carried it away. Fundevogel and Lina loved each other so dearly thatwhen they did not see each other they were sad.

Now the forester had an old cook, who one evening took two pails andbegan to fetch water, and did not go once only, but many times, outto the spring. Lina saw this and said, 'Listen, old Sanna, why are youfetching so much water?' 'If you will never repeat it to anyone, I willtell you why.' So Lina said, no, she would never repeat it to anyone,and then the cook said: 'Early tomorrow morning, when the foresteris out hunting, I will heat the water, and when it is boiling in thekettle, I will throw in Fundevogel, and will boil him in it.'

Early next morning the forester got up and went out hunting, and when hewas gone the children were still in bed. Then Lina said to Fundevogel:'If you will never leave me, I too will never leave you.' Fundevogelsaid: 'Neither now, nor ever will I leave you.' Then said Lina: 'Thenwill I tell you. Last night, old Sanna carried so many buckets of waterinto the house that I asked her why she was doing that, and she saidthat if I would promise not to tell anyone, and she said that earlytomorrow morning when father was out hunting, she would set the kettlefull of water, throw you into it and boil you; but we will get upquickly, dress ourselves, and go away together.'

The two children therefore got up, dressed themselves quickly, and wentaway. When the water in the kettle was boiling, the cook went into thebedroom to fetch Fundevogel and throw him into it. But when she came in,and went to the beds, both the children were gone. Then she was terriblyalarmed, and she said to herself: 'What shall I say now when theforester comes home and sees that the children are gone? They must befollowed instantly to get them back again.'

Then the cook sent three servants after them, who were to run andovertake the children. The children, however, were sitting outside theforest, and when they saw from afar the three servants running, Linasaid to Fundevogel: 'Never leave me, and I will never leave you.'Fundevogel said: 'Neither now, nor ever.' Then said Lina: 'Do you becomea rose-tree, and I the rose upon it.' When the three servants came tothe forest, nothing was there but a rose-tree and one rose on it, butthe children were nowhere. Then said they: 'There is nothing to be donehere,' and they went home and told the cook that they had seen nothingin the forest but a little rose-bush with one rose on it. Then theold cook scolded and said: 'You simpletons, you should have cut therose-bush in two, and have broken off the rose and brought it home withyou; go, and do it at once.' They had therefore to go out and look forthe second time. The children, however, saw them coming from a distance.Then Lina said: 'Fundevogel, never leave me, and I will never leaveyou.' Fundevogel said: 'Neither now; nor ever.' Said Lina: 'Then do youbecome a church, and I'll be the chandelier in it.' So when the threeservants came, nothing was there but a church, with a chandelier init. They said therefore to each other: 'What can we do here, let us gohome.' When they got home, the cook asked if they had not found them;so they said no, they had found nothing but a church, and there was achandelier in it. And the cook scolded them and said: 'You fools! whydid you not pull the church to pieces, and bring the chandelier homewith you?' And now the old cook herself got on her legs, and went withthe three servants in pursuit of the children. The children, however,saw from afar that the three servants were coming, and the cook waddlingafter them. Then said Lina: 'Fundevogel, never leave me, and I willnever leave you.' Then said Fundevogel: 'Neither now, nor ever.'Said Lina: 'Be a fishpond, and I will be the duck upon it.' The cook,however, came up to them, and when she saw the pond she lay down by it,and was about to drink it up. But the duck swam quickly to her, seizedher head in its beak and drew her into the water, and there the oldwitch had to drown. Then the children went home together, and wereheartily delighted, and if they have not died, they are living still.